What is Patent Law? It encompasses the branch of law that governs patents. U.S. patent laws were enacted by Congress under its Constitutional grant of authority to protect the discoveries of inventors. A patent is the grant of an exclusive property right to the inventor for the benefits of an invention or improvement, granted by the U.S. Patent & Trademark Office (USPTO), for a specific period of time. The invention or idea, by its nature, must be patentable; one skilled in the applicable field must be able to make and use the claimed invention; it must be new (novel) and has not been iterated; its originality must be obvious, meaning the idea cannot be something that anyone in the applicable field of expertise could have easily identified; and it must be useful. Patent law specialists can make a search of patents to determine if the proposed invention is truly unique, and if it appears to be, can file an application, including detailed drawings and specifications.

Only the inventor, or an attorney registered to practice before the USPTO, can prepare and submit a patent application. A legal document, which contains a detailed description of what the invention is and how to make or use it, is issued to the inventor (patentee), which gives the owner of the patent the right to exclude any other person from making, using, or selling the invention covered by the patent.

The USPTO offers the following types of patent applications: 1) utility, which includes a process, a machine, manufactured products, and compounds or mixtures (such as chemical formulas); 2) design, which is a new, original and ornamental design for a manufactured article; and 3) plant inventions, which are any distinct and new variety of cultivated asexually reproduced plants. The USPTO classifies applications for utility and plant inventions into provisional and non-provisional applications. Provisional patent applications may be filed for any invention that has not been publicly disclosed for more than one year from the date of filing. Provisional patent applications do not get examined by the USPTO, but are used as a vehicle to obtain a priority date and may be useful in obtaining “patent pending” status on ideas during final stages of development, or while raising capital or test marketing. The USPTO does not use provisional and non-provisional applications for design inventions. The Patent Cooperation Treaty (PCT) is an international agreement for filing patent applications. Although an inventor cannot obtain an international patent through the PCT, it does allow the inventor to file a single international patent application in order to simultaneously seek protection for an invention in over 125 countries worldwide.

The term of a new patent has changed over time and is currently 20 years from the earliest claimed filing date, but all three types of patents require payment of maintenance fees to keep them effective. Once the term has ended, if no extension has been filed and approved, the patented invention enters the public domain. Manufacture of a product upon which there is an existing patent is "patent infringement" which can result in a lawsuit against the infringer with substantial damages granted.

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Articles About Patent Law

Copyright infringement is a rampant crime in the age where technology rules over these matters, and the issues with copyrighted works being copied and distributed increases each year. However, the need for an expert witness arises when similar works are fashioned from the original that are similar enough to lead to infringement claims against the author.

Applying for a patent and then developing a strong application for the invention often requires an expert’s assistance, and this could lead to further costs when a patent lawyer has been hired. Many applicants that first start the process may require a portfolio with great value to get to the point where a patent application and then invention are considered strong.

When obtaining a trademark for a company, products or services, the costs may be extensive depending on how the owner decides to apply, and this could alter if he or she expands from one state to the nation or globally. Patents are equally expensive, and may be registered similarly through one location or around the entire world.

International patents are complicated and take more time and energy than any single patent in the United States because often, the applicant must apply to each country individually. There are some nations that may be coupled together through the Patent Cooperation Treaty and similar programs, but this does not solve the issue for every location around the world.

Applying for a patent is a lengthy and costly process that often results in a rejection at least initially for the person seeking to make a commercial success of his or her invention. When rejection appears to be the only answer provided, it is crucial to hire a patent lawyer to help improve the process and seek a successful end result to applications.

A patent lawyer can help handle patent applications in order to try to get the patent approved and intellectual property protected. However, it is critical to the success of this process to choose the right patent lawyer. Some steps that can lead to this eventual success include:

A novelty search tries to determine if an invention or idea is new before the inventor takes the time and makes the investment of submitting a patent application. By conducting this process in a thorough manner, inventors can avoid putting too much time into an idea or concept that is not patentable.

A novelty search tries to determine if an invention or idea is new before the inventor takes the time and makes the investment of submitting a patent application. By conducting this process in a thorough manner, inventors can avoid putting too much time into an idea or concept that is not patentable.

A patent lawyer can help handle patent applications in order to try to get the patent approved and intellectual property protected. However, it is critical to the success of this process to choose the right patent lawyer. Some steps that can lead to this eventual success include:

Fair use and intellectual property have an important correlation in that fair use only exists to ensure that violations of intellectual property do not occur. The copyright protections keep others from copying work, but there are certain stipulations called fair use that permit others to use portions of the book or other written creation depending on the actions of the individual.

Patent Law - United States

American Patent and Trademark Law Center is a professional association of independent registered patent attorneys and specializes in patent, trademark, copyright and related business and government contract matters, such as licenses.

The States party to this Treaty (hereinafter called "the Contracting States") constitute a Union for cooperation in the filing, searching, and examination, of applications for the protection of inventions, and for rendering special technical services.

Patents grant an inventor the right to exclude others from producing or using the inventor's discovery or invention for a limited period of time. U.S. patent laws were enacted by Congress under its Constitutional grant of authority to protect thediscoveries of inventors.

United States patent law was established "to promote the Progress of Science and useful Arts, by securing for limited Times to Authors and Inventors the exclusive Right to their respective Writings and Discoveries;" as provided in the United States Constitution.

Our goal is to provide you with the most diverse and current resource center for the professional patent law community and inventors. The Patent Law Portal is the definitive guide for patent information required by inventors and patent professionals alike.